Meditation Education

By Deb Huntley

A critique on meditation for everyone, and teaching children mindfulness.

• Language: English
• Publisher: eBooks2go
• Release date: Mar 4, 2020
• ISBN: 9781545750650

Book preview

Present

Preface

Do we know what we are doing?

When you hear the word meditation, what does that bring to mind? The word zen means meditation, so many will think of zen gardens or monks in robes. But meditation could mean just sitting still in silence, taking a peaceful walk in nature, repeating a word or sound, creating mental images, or simply musing. Are there any other possibilities? Yes, the possibilities are limitless!

This little publication is based on over four decades of meditation practice with six wonderful Buddhist teachers in the USA and in Europe. I’m not attempting to offer scientific evidence about meditation, as I will leave that to the scientists. And I will leave the history of various religions and their practices to the historians. What is offered here is an introduction to meditation based on direct experiential observations.

While a clearer definition for the generic word meditation would be helpful, we also need a better understanding of what meditations actually involve. It can not be assumed that every meditation is good for us, nor can it be assumed that every teacher is clear, kind, and wise. Discriminating awareness is required in choosing to participate in any meditation practice. And to offer meditation to children, it is essential that their grown-ups know what they are doing. Misunderstandings, mistakes, and incorrect interpretations of ancient beloved practices do happen. Just because someone uses the title of teacher, there is no guarantee that they know what they are doing, even if they look the part.

In 21st Century America when we use the word meditation we are usually referring to being outwardly silent and still, but what is going on mentally inside the meditator cannot be assumed. In prayer, a person could be silently reciting holy verses, confessing, visualizing, asking for what is desired, or listening to deep silence. From the outside, if someone is pausing in silence and especially if their head is lowered and hands in the prayer position, almost anyone in the world would say that that person was in silent prayer -- yet, no one would know with any certainty exactly what was happening in that person’s mind.

When prayer consists solely of listening, it becomes a silent meditation. I have experienced many Zen retreats in Europe and the US with Catholic and other clergy. This is successful because Buddha’s wake-up meditation is not based on beliefs or even cultural rituals. Rather, it is based on being fully conscious in the present moment. People of any faith can practice that without conflict of conscience, and many do.

The whole point of wake-up meditation is to cultivate the art of being fully present right here right now, to be awake in the moment. Being present is like a cat watching and listening for something to move. The cat is totally alert. So, does every kind of meditation go